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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · rest · ground · firm · wax · wake · root · game

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. ground — crushed
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. game — wild animals
  12. root — the cause
  13. game — a match
  14. rest — a break
  15. rest — what's left
  16. root — of a word
  17. firm — a company
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wax — to grow
  20. field — for sport
  21. ground — the earth
  22. firm — steady
  23. ground — a position
  24. root — of a plant

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com